Pretoria station in 1893
was quite different from what it was in 1914. The lights
were burning dimly. The travellers were few. I let all
the other passengers go and thought that, as soon as the
ticket collector was fairly free, I would hand him my
ticket and ask him if he could direct me to some small
hotel or any other such place where I might go;
otherwise I would spend the night at the station. I must
confess I shrank from asking him even this, for I was
afraid of being insulted.
The station became clear
of all passengers. I gave my ticket to the ticket
collector and began my inquiries. He replied to me
courteously, but I saw that he could not be of any
considerable help. But an American Negro who was
standing near by broke into the conversation.
“I see,” said he, “that
you are an utter stranger here, without any friends. If
you will come with me I will take you to a small hotel,
of which the proprietor is an American who is very well
known to me. I think he will accept you.”
I had my own doubts about
the offer, but I thanked him and accepted his
suggestion. He took me to Johnston’s Family Hotel. He
drew Mr. Johnston aside to speak to him, and the latter
agreed to accommodate me for the night, on condition
that I should have my dinner served in my room.
“I assure you,” said he,
“that I have no colour prejudice. But I have only
European custom, and if I allowed you to eat in the
dining room, my guests might be offended and even go away.”
“Thank you,” said I, “even
for accommodating me for the night. I am now more or
less acquainted with the conditions here, and I
understand your difficulty. I do not mind your serving
the dinner in my room. I hope to be able to make some
other arrangement tomorrow.”
I was shown into a room
where I now sat waiting for the dinner and thinking, as
I was quite alone. There were not many guests in the
hotel, and I had expected the waiter to come very
shortly with the dinner. Instead Mr. Johnston appeared.
He said : “I was ashamed of having asked you to have
your dinner here. So I spoke to the other guests about
you, and asked them if they would mind your having your
dinner in the dining room. They said they had no
objection, and that they did not mind your staying here
as long as you liked. Please, therefore, come to the
dining room, if you will, and stay here as long as you
wish.” I thanked him again, went to the dining room and
had a hearty dinner.
Next morning I called on
the attorney, Mr. A. W. Baker. Abdulla Sheth had given
me some description of him, so his cordial reception did
not surprise me. He received me very warmly and made
kind inquiries. I explained all about myself. Thereupon
he said: “We have no work for you here as barrister, for
we have engaged the best lawyer. The case is a prolonged
and complicated one, so I shall take your assistance
only to the extent of getting necessary information. And
of course, you will make communication with my client
easy for me, as I shall now ask for all the information
I want from him through you. That is certainly an
advantage. I have not yet found rooms for you. I thought
I had better do so after having seen you. There is a
fearful amount of colour prejudice here, and therefore
it is not easy to find lodging for such as you. But I
know a poor woman. She is the wife of a baker. I think
she will take you and thus add to her income at the same
time. Come, let us go to her place.”
So he took me to her
house. He spoke with her privately about me, and she
agreed to accept me as a boarder at 35 shillings a week.